Tag: Keith Clinton

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Food & Wine Food & Drink

The Extra Mile

Keith Clinton (Photo: Michael Donahue)

Keith Clinton puts the “experience” in “dining experience” at Chez Philippe.

In addition to what they find on their plates, diners also are surprised by the extras Clinton provides.

Clinton, 35, immediately put his footprint down earlier this year when he became chef de cuisine at the elegant restaurant at The Peabody. “I move so fast,” he says. “And I change the menu constantly. We’re so hyper-focused on seasoning and sourcing of ingredients. We must move. And I am constantly pushing and constantly recreating and developing. And they give me the space to do that.”

Also, he adds, “I’m just fascinated with food. Fascinated with nature. The process of it all.”

Clinton, who was chef de cuisine for five years at Erling Jensen: The Restaurant, was a private chef when he heard about The Peabody opening. “I was looking to have a little more fun. I missed service. I missed going fast.”

Clinton is now having fun. He searches for unusual ingredients, as well as the best familiar ingredients, for his cuisine. He and his kitchen staff are constantly making trips to Jones Orchard in Millington, Tennessee. “I really like taking my guys out there. And just spending an afternoon before service picking produce we’re going to use that weekend.”

Like the strawberries they bought last spring. “We would pick the green ones. Just a little ripe. A little not ready. And ferment them for a dish on the menu.”

He made a green strawberry sorbet with the fermented strawberries. They topped that off with some buttermilk ice. “So, it’s like a buttermilk granita.”

Clinton also regularly visits Viet Hoa Market — “an amazing resource on Cleveland” — to find unusual ingredients.

But he also educates diners. “I’ll take all the ingredients in raw format — ramps and raw mushrooms — out to the table and say, ‘This is what’s in this dish.’”

He pinpoints certain times during his seven-course menu to go into the dining room. He’ll show up with shoyu, a liquid made from cherry blossoms, for his tuna fish, grapefruit, and avocado dish. He’ll “pour the shoyu over the dish at the table and talk to guests. Explain it to them.”

Clinton also researches guests who’ve made reservations. “Gathering as much information about them so we can tailor the experience.”

He’ll look them up on LinkedIn and Whitepages. “I know I have two hours to figure out something about this person with the information I received. And I translate that into an experience that is customized to that person. Which is a challenge to me.”

For instance, Clinton discovered a particular couple once celebrated a wedding anniversary at Earnestine & Hazel’s. He assumed they had Soul Burgers, so he created mini smash burgers, which he surprised them with halfway through their meal. “Nobody else got a Soul Burger that night but them.”

His menus are “more seasonal than just the four main seasons. Especially when things are only around a couple of weeks or only once a month.”

His seven-course menu includes a snack course that can be eaten by hand. These include items like a fig and almond butter tart and a mushroom and truffle tuile. “I put in a hot towel service. When they’re done eating with their hands, I present them with a hot towel that’s steamed in essential oils.”

Diners even get “playful mignardise,” little snacks, maybe like a Windsor cookie, they can “eat in the car on the ride home or the next morning.”

He wants his diners to know, “We’re still thinking of you. And hope you’re still thinking of us.”

Clinton knows when to visit a table. “Some people seem open to it, some are more reserved. I play it by ear.”

He will “catch the vibe.” That’s when he might think, “I’ve been out there too much. I’ve been to their table five times. Let them eat.”

But, Clinton says, “Building that relationship with the guests, going the extra mile, is necessary.”

Chez Philippe is at The Peabody at 149 Union Avenue.

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Food & Wine Food & Drink

S. Main Pop-Up Eatery CCC Makes Permanent Plans

Rande Johnson and Meredith and Keith Clinton (Photo: Michael Donahue)

CCC on the front window at 409 S. Main stands for “Chicken Champagne Caviar.”

“But it’s going through a lot of evolutions,” says chef Keith Clinton, who operates CCC, a new pop-up restaurant, with his wife and fellow chef, Meredith Clinton.

“We can change it … make different concepts. She’s already thinking about different things to change it to.” Like “cheeseburger” and “corn dogs.” They also do “catering.”

“‘Contribute’ is another C-word,” Meredith says. They wanted to create a space where people “can do their own thing. If you want to sell T-shirts or temporary tattoos, sell it, make some money.” The Clintons also want to “collaborate” with other chefs. “A lot of our friends are helping us cook, make the cocktails, and serve.”

CCC, which is open Friday through Sunday, began with the Casserole Cat Club, which Meredith formed with her friends. That’s why they chose the letter C, Keith says. “Also, our last name starts with C.”

“I have an affinity, a love for casseroles,” Meredith says. “I love casseroles so much I have a casserole tattoo.”

Also in the kitchen is chef Rande Johnson, who worked with them when they were at Erling Jensen: The Restaurant, Keith says.

But CCC is temporary; a new restaurant will take its place. “We’re doing construction on the whole building for the future restaurant,” Keith says. “While we’re waiting on permits to be pulled, we decided to do this CCC pop-up.”

They’re operating the business in the building known as the Puck Building.

“The concept of CCC is because we needed something kind of small and easy that can handle a lot of foot traffic,” Keith says. “We decided to go with fried chicken because Meredith has been working on this fried chicken her whole life. She grew up working in a gas station in Hayti, Missouri.”

Meredith loves that gas-station fried chicken, but for the past three years she’s been trying to make “the best.”

“I feel like I’m always working on it. Always slightly tweaking it” she says. “The marinade is super important. And the things that are in it contribute to the flavor.”

She only uses chicken thighs. “The dark meat. They’ve got more flavor, are more moist. Chicken breasts are good, but they don’t have a lot going on.”

There will be a range of champagnes, including medium- to higher-grade. The caviar will primarily be “a kaluga hybrid,” Keith says. “Kind of medium-sized eggs … amber colored. Not too salty. A little cheesy. Not too oily.” They also will offer some of their high-grade “private stock,” including Oscietra.

You don’t have to order all three Cs. “Everything is a la carte,” Keith says.

The Clintons aren’t ready to reveal the name or much about the upcoming restaurant, but just about everything will change, including the decor and layout. For now, they’ve turned downstairs into a “mini living room” with an eclectic mix of furniture, including lounge chairs and couches. The new restaurant will feature a small lounge area, a bar, an area for formal dining, and a chef’s table.

As for the food, Meredith says, “I’m very conscious of sustainability and local and things in season and foraging.” The menu will “always be changing, and hyper-focused on share-ability.”

She and Keith have their special strengths, Meredith says. “My main strength is writing menus and creating dishes.” Plating is one of Keith’s strengths. “I can create a dish and think of all the flavors that go into it and Keith makes it look absolutely beautiful.”

So, who is the executive chef? “I would say we’re both the executive chef,” Meredith says, adding, “We’re both the boss, but I’m more of the boss, maybe. I’m more of the final say. I’m very particular about things.”

For instance, Keith wants to hang a large chandelier in the kitchen. Meredith wants to hang a disco ball there.

Stay tuned.

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Food & Drink Hungry Memphis

Puck Food Hall Building at 409 South Main Takes on New Life

Meredith Gardner Clinton is chef de cuisine and a partner in Black Sheep Catering and the upcoming restaurant at 409 South Main. (Credit: Trey Easter)

Meredith Gardner Clinton is excited about the rebirth of the old Puck Food Hall building at 409 South Main. 

“I’m down here at 409 and right now we’re just kind of cleaning out the place,” Clinton says.

And, she says, “There’s going to be restaurant. I don’t know if they’ve come up with a name. I don’t know what concept they’re going to go with.”

An image of the nature sprite Puck sits atop 409 South Main. (Credit: Michael Donahue)

They don’t have a target date for the opening of the restaurant, but they currently are catering for “private dinners or if you have a holiday party,” Clinton says. “Birthday parties, weddings, and baby showers.”  They can cater basically any private event, “either here or off location.”

Clinton, former sous chef at Erling Jensen: The Restaurant, will be chef de cuisine at her new business, where she is a partner along with Jared Welch and Bill Ganus.

Meredith Gardner Clinton. (Credit: Trey Easter)

The building, formerly Puck Food Hall, will comprise one restaurant and the catering business, Clinton says. “I’m going to be supervising everything, but mostly the food end. I want everything to be done the way I want it done.”

As for the cuisine, Clinton says they’re “kind of waiting” to decide what that will be. But, she says, “I’m always going to lean towards Southern ‘cause that’s just the cuisine I was raised into and the cuisine I always go back into.”

The catering side is called Black Sheep Catering. “I think people in the restaurant business are all kind of black sheep,” she says.

In a restaurant, it’s “kind of this culture” to just be an outcast, Clinton says. “Because we don’t sleep in late. We’re not trying to get up to go to work 9 to 5 and go home and have dinner. I think it’s just a personality trait. You can go with the grain or go against it.”

Some people view “black sheep” as a “bad term,” but Clinton says, “We’re using it as a good term. Something more elegant.”

Clinton, who is from Haiti, Missouri, says her grandmother was her cooking influence. “I grew up in a small town where my dad had a gas station. I was around a lot of ‘fried chicken gas station stuff.’ I started working there when I was 12. Just cooking fried chicken and making biscuits, biscuits and gravy, and stuff like that.”

She moved to Memphis to attend L’ecole Culinaire culinary school. “And that’s how I met Jimmy Gentry and Ben Smith and all the other great chefs that were there. Rick Farmer. And Ben Smith offered me a job [at Tsunami].”

She moved back home before officially moving to Memphis in 2013.  Her husband, Keith Clinton, is former chef de cuisine at Erling Jensen: The Restaurant. They have one child.

As for her new job, Clinton says, “I’m so excited. It’s going to be a lot to take on so I’m obviously nervous.”

But, she adds, “They say if you’re not nervous, your dreams aren’t big enough. So, I’m excited to do something new.”

To cater an event with Black Sheep Catering, call 901-402-4498.

Meredith Gardner Clinton. (Credit: Trey Easter)
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Food & Wine Food & Drink

Bar Upgrades at Erling Jensen

This year, Erling Jensen The Restaurant will trade its tiny patio for an expanded bar area and fresh, new menu options.

The change will double the size of the bar room and eliminate the patio altogether, which is seen by staff as an unpopular seating choice for restaurant guests.

“No one really goes out there,” says chef de cuisine Keith Clinton. “Sometimes if it’s really crowded inside, people will, but I wouldn’t call it the best patio in town.”

Lorna Field

Erling Jenson chef de cuisine Keith Clinton (above)

You could say the patio is even kind of dismal: It’s small and lacks atmosphere, offering only a view of the parking lot and some commercial real estate nearby. And, to me, this feels like a disservice to the restaurant, which offers some of the best fine dining in the city.

Though he’s been with the restaurant for about six years, Clinton has only been chef de cuisine for the past two. However, in that time, he has received a wealth of local and national attention. Recently, Clinton was a guest on the Food Network show Guy’s Grocery Games.

“I wanted to see the TV side of it all,” Clinton says. “It’s extremely fast-paced, and a lot of the things that I thought would be fake and dramatized were not. Like the countdown was very real. When they give you 10 seconds, they really mean it.”

Renovations on the restaurant are expected to begin any day now, but they plan to stay open for the duration. The bar area will expand by roughly 100 square feet, several additions will be made to the bar menu, and they may even offer a new tasting menu as well.

“We’ve got some crazy ideas, like when we expand and [the bar] room gets bigger, we would talk about doing a tasting-only room,” Clinton says. “We would do wine tastings and food pairings and stuff like that weekly.

“It happens all the time, and it’s something people ask for. It’s not on the menu, but people can come and say, ‘Can you do something just for us?’ and we say, ‘Sure, how many courses?’ So we thought about offering a tasting menu specifically to this new area,” Clinton says, referring to the expanded bar room.

The bar hasn’t always been there, but since it was installed it’s perhaps the most popular part of the restaurant.

“We used to do all of our service drinks and wine through the server alley,” Clinton says. “The bar has done better every year since it’s gone up and has always exceeded the expectations we set out for it.

“From a business side alone, the bar is great for us. But I think for the guests who don’t necessarily go for such a fine dining experience and have to sit down and go through silverware changes and all that stuff, they can actually come in and just sit down and enjoy something [at the bar].”

The bar offers a more relaxed, intimate environment for those who just want to have a great dining experience without all the stuffiness of a fancy restaurant. The bar also has its own separate menu, but guests can order à-la-carte from the dining room menu, too.

“We come out and shave the truffles for them right here, and people really like that. It’s fun for us, too,” Clinton says.

Erling Jensen The Restaurant is known for its seasonally changing menus, which is perhaps why the majority of guests are regulars: It’s impossible to get sick of eating the same thing over and over when there are always new dishes to choose from.

Likewise, so many people feel a personal connection because the staff go above and beyond to make everyone feel comfortable and welcome. Jensen himself is there most nights and loves to walk around the dining room chatting with and thanking guests.

“We don’t take reservations, so it feels kind of exclusive in a way,” Clinton says.

Renovations are expected to be complete by the end of spring, but in the meantime, go enjoy some handmade tortellini and say “Hi” to Erling.

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Food & Wine Food & Drink

Erling Jensen’s chef de cuisine Keith Clinton.

CREDIT: Michael Donahue

Drumsticks — not the edible kind — were part of Keith Clinton’s passion as a teenager.

Clinton, 30, chef de cuisine at Erling Jensen: The Restaurant, began playing drums as a high school freshman. “I was horrible,” he says. “I remember some kids walking by. I opened the window and I thought I could impress them. They were some older kids. I remember playing whatever beat I knew how to play, and they just laughed and laughed and laughed.”

But he kept at it. He eventually helped form the Infidelles and the Incredible Hook rock bands.

Michael Donahue

Keith Clinton

Prior to drumming, Clinton was an avid artist. He excelled at painting and clay molding in middle school. “I liked to put my hands on something and mold something or create something out of a very small thing. I got to kind of do that with playing drums. I got to use my hands. I got to use my body.”

So, cooking was a natural step. Clinton grew up watching his mother make dinner every night. “I don’t know if I was more interested in the food or if I was more interested in how she was doing it.”

Clinton realized the importance of cooking to him after he got a job with a caterer. He thought, “This is what I was made to do.”

He worked saute at Flight Restaurant and Wine Bar before he heard about an opening at Erling’s. “I didn’t know much about this place or what it meant to the Memphis dining scene. I was very ambitious, and I thought, ‘Oh, I can do that. That’s not a big deal. It’s just a restaurant. I work at Flight.'”

Clinton got the job. “I was young, and I thought I knew everything. But I remember the first day I walked in thinking, ‘I don’t know anything about cooking.’

“Everything was so detailed. And everything was so laborious. Everything took so long to make something so perfect. There were so many factors that went into all of it on a level that I had never experienced before.”

Jensen “was riding me a lot and he was very tough.”

The other chefs said, “‘He’s trying to mold you. He’s trying to shape you. He’s trying to make you better.'”

That added “fuel to that passion I already had. I always want to be better. But having someone so predominant and so intelligent and so capable of their craft encourage me in that way, I felt really accelerated. I thought, ‘I’ve got someone who’s got my back on this.'”

Clinton quickly caught on. “It wasn’t just making food. It was creating something truly perfect and beautiful. And it was innovative. It was classic preparation to things. Like all this French cooking style I had no idea about.”

Erling Jensen’s is where Clinton wants to be. “I want to change the way fine dining is being done in a sense that I want to present it in a different way. I want diners to experience a more immersive experience. It’s dining. It’s fine. It’s detailed. It’s not just consuming food.”

Dining is “changing your silverware for you. Changing everything out every course. Bringing you all these extra little amuse-bouches and intermezzos and petits fours. Classic dining is so sexy to me. We have that opportunity here to continue to present that sexiness, that fine aspect of enjoying and eating a meal. But we also have a chance to explore.”

Jensen is “a very classic chef who can make any classic preparation of any dish, but he can also employ these people who have their own visions and their own goals and they’re able to push dining in a different area. Do their own thing.

“It’s like a 50/50 dining experience. You get to stick to tradition 50 percent of the time, and then the other 50 percent of the time, you get to push the boundaries.”

He also enjoys getting to work at Erling’s with his partner, sous chef Meredith Gardner. “We get to do something beautiful together.”

Clinton hasn’t forgotten about music. “I haven’t stopped playing. But I’m so in love with this. They’re very similar, you know. Making food for someone and having someone enjoy something you’ve created is the same as recording a song and having someone listen to it in their car on the drive home from work or on a long road trip. It’s almost the same experience.”

Erling Jensen: The Restaurant,
1044 South Yates, 763-3700